Legal Question in Family Law in Massachusetts

I am (was) in a relationship with a woman. She moved into the home I solely own about 10 month ago. She has a 5 year old son and the father has custody. He has a bedroom at my home as he would visit his mother every other weekend. A couple of nights ago we had an altercation and she hit me in the face several times when she was intoxicated. She bloodied my nose and a black eye. I refrained and did not harm her in any way. She called the police that night on me and thank god they arrested her instead. I decided that the relationship is too much to handle any more and met her at court for her hearing. I told the judge I didn't really want to see her charged with assault and battery and I didn't call in the complaint, she did; but that doesn�t matter because it�s the state that presses the charges. I filed for a restraining order because she is not a woman to move out or go away because I broke up with her; she�s convinced that fate has brought her to me. The judge granted me an order for 6 months, and she is not allowed near the house, my work or to contact me in any way. She came by with a police officer escort last night to get some clothes. The question is she has a lot of personal items in my house, what can I do with them? Do I have to wait for her to get them? Can I move them to a storage unit with a couple of months paid on it? Can I force her to get her things by a certain date? I just want to know my legal rights because she doesn't understand that it�s over and most likely thinks she'll be coming back. Does the restraining order mean she's out for good now? Or do I need to evict still? Will she be allowed to say she lives there 6 months from now? Any clarification is appreciated; the advocates at the court house couldn't answer these questions when I asked.


Asked on 12/15/10, 11:04 am

1 Answer from Attorneys

She is out of the house and she was not a tenant. I would suggest you contact the Police or the Court clerk and see if you can arrange to have all her things removed from your home, either by her or put in storage. You may have to file a Motion with the court and ask for permission to place her things in storage or ask that she be required to remove them within 60 days.

Good Luck

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Answered on 12/20/10, 11:40 am


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